Wes Bentley on the One Big Difference Between ‘The Hunger Games’ and Acting

Actor Wes Bentley was best known for his role in the Oscar-winning film American Beauty. Since then he dropped out of the spotlight and has recovered from a heroin addiction. He’s currently jumping back into the Hollywood scene as Seneca Crane in the wildly popular Hunger Games movie.

In an interview with Vulture, Bentley noted the similarities between the merciless movie business and The Hunger Games. The 33 year-old said, “It’s a competitive business. But there’s one big difference: I’m choosing to be here and I’m choosing to go through this, whereas those kids aren’t, in the movie or in the books. It is difficult as an actor to be an artist and be competitive. If you’re just competing to make more money or to be the biggest name out there, it can be kind of devastating. You have to be careful. What kind of ‘competitive’ are you being? Are you trying to be a better actor? That’s fine. Or are you trying to be a bigger star? That’s not helping anybody but yourself.”

Bentley doesn’t have the same drive to be the most popular star like other actors. He said, “I don’t battle so much with being the biggest star. I sometimes wish I had more money, like everybody does, you know? When I’m like, ‘Oh, so-and-so is blowing up,’ I have to check myself and see what I’m really concerned about. And luckily, in the end, I’m really concerned about being a good actor. I wanna learn from them. And maybe try to better them, so maybe they learn from me in some aspect or another.”

Either way, Bentley is sure to get some positive press for his role in Hollywood’s newest blockbuster.

‘Phantom Thread’ Star Lesley Manville: “It’s so easy to make someone bad look good on film. In theatre, there’s no hiding place”

"Filming is different. You’re getting a moment right. You can go in and create something very good, very quickly. That’s a different challenge to having five, six weeks to rehearse a play.” - Lesley Manville